Parallel Lines
by Sparks and Sharps
Summary: Kotetsu discovers that his late wife's fascination with his unusually long legs is something Barnaby shares. Kotetsu/Tomoe. Kotetsu/Barnaby. Oneshot.


_Warning you, this is one of those embarrassingly sappy anonmeme fills that I sometimes make but usually never own up to. Someone liked it enough that they wanted to translate it and give proper credit for it, so I'm all for making a big dope of myself every once in awhile._

_Speaking of which – to the anon that asked to translate it: feel free. Glad you enjoyed it that much. You might want to do this version instead of the kinkmeme version, since I do usually make tweaks and corrections between versions._

_Anyways, the prompt was Kotetsu/anyone – leg worship. I chose to make it both Kotetsu/Tomoe and Kotetsu/Barnaby. It is sappy as all fuck. You have been warned._

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><p>When it came to the subject of his legs, Kotetsu used to be rather sour about them.<p>

He had undergone a sudden growth spurt in the middle of his junior year, and almost all of the added height was provided by the limbs in question. They embarrassed him, really. Their unwieldy length seemed to have multiplied his once occasional bouts of clumsiness tenfold. Almost all of his pants had become too short, ending two or three inches above his ankles. (There wasn't a store in town that sold anything with a thirty-seven inch inseam.) While he was finally starting to add muscle to his frame, he was still rather thin, and his new legs seemed to emphasize his lankiness far more than he would prefer.

Kotetsu didn't really like his legs. Tomoe, on the other hand, begged to differ.

Throughout his spurt, she had taken to commenting on them almost daily, usually noting how long they were getting and how slender they were. Kotetsu had thought she was making fun of him until he confronted her about it. Tomoe laughed at the possibility.

"Why would you think _that?_" She had asked, scoffing.

"Because you keep calling my legs skinny."

"No, I called them _slim_. Those two words have entirely different connotations."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"'Slim' specifically suggests a pleasing aesthetic quality that 'skinny' does not. It implies litheness."

"... Er, what?"

"It means I'm _complimenting_ them, you idiot!"

A furious warmth had bled through his stomach when he heard that. It would take Kotetsu years to catch on to the fact that she honestly thought his legs were attractive– he had figured she was just trying to make them feel better – but he was much less uncomfortable with them and the inconveniences they brought him after that conversation.

Even when he had finally stopped growing and had filled out properly, Kotetsu's legs remained longer and spindlier than they really ought to have, and they were still responsible for many slips and pratfalls. Just as well, though, since Tomoe loved them that way. She payed extra focus on them when they began dating – kissing them, caressing them, massaging them. There wasn't a week that passed by in which she didn't remind him about how beautiful she thought they were.

It was one of the things he loved so much about Tomoe – she made him feel proud of every bit of himself.

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><p>Kotetsu wasn't quite sure how he got from letting Barnaby help him make dinner to letting Barnaby drag him to the bed upstairs, climb on top of him, and systematically tear off his clothes, but he wasn't complaining. His waistcoat was long gone now, as was the shirt. Right now, an equally shirtless Barnaby was unfastening Kotetsu's belt with a determined look on his face. For a virgin, he was rather calm about all of this. Maybe he did research. Speaking of which...<p>

"Hey, Bunny. I don't think we can go all the way tonight, okay? I don't really have any lube."

Barnaby gave a quick nod, undeterred by the news. "I'm fine with that," he replied, not even bothering to slow down. Ripping the belt from Kotetsu's pants, he tossed it aside and reached for the zipper.

Kotetsu lifted his hips, and the pants were off in a single, smooth move. To his surprise, however, Barnaby didn't reach to remove his briefs. Instead, he spread Kotetsu's legs and lowered his head between them.

Kotetsu felt the feathery tickle against his inner thigh, and blinked. It felt like a kiss. He propped himself up on his elbows to get a better view of what Barnaby was doing. "Oi, Bunny. What's going on down there?"

Barnaby delivered three more light kisses to Kotetsu's thigh before he lifted his head to respond. "You don't mind, do you?" he asked. "They're so gorgeous it's hard to help myself."

"Eh?" Kotetsu tilted his head. He felt Barnaby's hands massaging his lower legs, pressing firmly against tensed muscles as they moved. Barnaby chuckled at Kotetsu's confusion

"I'd ask you if you're always this oblivious, but I know already the answer," the blond man said with an amused smirk. He continued running his hands up and down Kotetsu's shins as he spoke. "I mean your legs, Kotetsu. Has anyone ever told you how long they are?"

Yes, actually.

Kotetsu's chest stopped mid-breath. There was that same flood of heat in his stomach that he felt so long ago. He felt pressure behind his eyes – the sort he usually felt when he was about to tear up.

Barnaby must have noticed the tears welling up, because he had stopped. "Is something wrong?" he asked, concerned.

"She used to say things like that all the time." Kotetsu shifted his weight onto one elbow so he could free up an arm to wipe his eyes. "My wife, I mean."

The words sank in quickly. Barnaby winced and took his hands off Kotetsu's legs so quickly you'd think he'd just touched fire. "God, I'm sorry!" he shouted. "I didn't know that-"

"It's okay, Bunny." Blinking away the remaining tears, Kotetsu gave a reassuring smile. "It feels good to hear and do this stuff again." He lifted one of his legs and let his foot run up his partner's side. Barnaby shuddered at it's touch, and Kotetsu grinned wider. "Please, keep going."

Relief spread across Barnaby's face. He nodded, trying hard not to smile, and moved forward so that Kotetsu could lock the man's waist between his thighs. Firmly in place, Barnaby nodded and let his fingertips fall the outside of Kotetsu's legs and began to caress. His movements were slow and deliberate. The tingle his hands brought to Kotetsu's skin lingered wonderfully. It was a feeling he was afraid he'd never get to experience again.

The briefs never did come off that night. Neither of them were the least bit disappointed with that. As both of them drifted off to sleep that night, Kotetsu felt Barnaby's hand take its place on his thigh as he pressed against him. He hadn't felt this satisfied with his life in far too long. And to think he'd been so against partnering with this man two years ago.

It was one of the things he loved about Barnaby - he always managed to bring Kotetsu happiness in ways he never expected.

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><p><em>For those who care: No, the 37-inch inseam thing was not, in fact, pulled out of my ass – although it's not any sort of official canon. I did some rough measuring based on his model sheets. Kotetsu's design is significantly leggier than almost every other character in the series (most of the other characters, Barnaby included, have legs about 50% their body height, which is what normal human proportions are. Kotetsu's are about 55%), and I'm told that the animators were specifically instructed to draw his pants so that they didn't quite reach his shoes and his socks were always visible. This inclines me to believe that Kotetsu's leg length is intended to be exceptionally long, probably to emphasize his klutziness. (ever notice how Kotetsu's more clumsy moments, like the pen-kicking incident and the derp run, involve his legs?)<em>

_Did I do an excessive amount of research on a cartoon superhero's legs? Yes. Yes, I did. If only I were this thorough for Psych 310._


End file.
